


River

by lmontyy



Series: EllieDina Week 2021 [4]
Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Canon Lesbian Relationship, Day Four, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, ELLIEDINA WEEK, Established Relationship, F/F, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Lesbian Character, Post-Canon, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, day four!!, family outing, prompt; family, the Farm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-18 06:40:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29854083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lmontyy/pseuds/lmontyy
Summary: Ellie and Dina decide to have one of their many family outings. Taking JJ down to the river will never cease to remind Ellie of just how excited she was to watch him grow. Dina can't adore her little family more.
Relationships: Dina/Ellie (The Last of Us)
Series: EllieDina Week 2021 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2188947
Comments: 2
Kudos: 42





	River

**Author's Note:**

> hey y'all! so sorry for how late this is, i've been busy at work literally all day. i just got home not that long ago and finished this up.
> 
> this is a simple little fluffy story. it tugged my heartstrings to write :(
> 
> THIS FIC IS INSPIRED BY "I DONT TRUST MYSELF (WITH LOVING YOU)" BY JOHN MAYER!
> 
> MY PERSONAL SPOTIFY PLAYLIST FOR ELLIEDINA WEEK CAN BE FOUND HERE: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6qf1UYhdoMRyaSLexX5oMQ?si=09Is9tz3TIqK26cp0IvB2Q&nd=1
> 
> hope you enjoy!

Time never seemed to affect Ellie anymore. It never seemed to matter. Whenever she was home, curled up in the sweet aura of the open air and the mountains and trees around her, listening to the hums of Dina’s favorite records and the coos of her son, time was completely and unequivocally irrelevant.

It was over a year since the terror in Seattle had passed. Over a year since the death of the closest person to her. Over a year since she’d completely lost herself.

Here she was, hundreds of miles away from that horrible city, secluded off from the rest of whatever society had left to offer, with the two people that meant the most in the world to her. It was a life she’d only ever dreamed of, even back in the dark alleys and fallen buildings of Boston. Even while controlled under the military, Ellie’s heart and soul always rested in the countryside of Jackson, Wyoming, in a farmhouse beside her woman and child.

It was the only reality that made living through such a world of hatred, pain, and sorrow worth it. Seeing Dina’s sleeping face beside her in bed every morning and every night, and waking up to the smiling, bouncing little baby in the crib across from their bed just made every second of agony worth it.

“You doing okay over there?” Dina’s soft, amused voice broke through Ellie’s wandering thoughts.

When pulled from her own head, Ellie finally came to, greeted by the sight of Dina at the chair just next to her – just adjacent to the head of the dining room table – and little JJ off on the direct other side, strapped in his high chair with some squished, broken banana slices in front of him and covering his bib. He looked almost as intrigued as his mother.

“Oh, yeah,” Ellie assured with a nervous glance, bringing her spoon full of chicken and spinach soup to her lips and gently tilting the delicious broth into her mouth. It really was a heavenly taste. No one ever cooked like Dina did.

Dina rested her cheek in the palm of her hand, her arm propped up by an elbow against the hard wood. She was smiling – so fragile – at the taller girl who looked like a deer caught in headlights amidst her own thoughts. Puzzled green eyes watched dark ones. “Looks like we lost you for a minute there.”

“No, no,” Ellie assured with a small chuckle. “You’re not losing anybody, don’t worry. I was just thinking, is all.”

“About what?” She asked as she readjusted herself curiously.

“Oh, nothing,” she insisted, a small smile on her lips. Remembering the past was never an easy trip for her.

Dina only examined her face with a troubled look behind those dark eyes. Ellie watched her expression shift from a concerned wonder to a bright smile as an idea came to her head.

“You feel like taking JJ to the river later?” She asked with a hopeful sincerity welled up behind her voice.

When Ellie’s eyes returned to hers, there was nothing but warmth behind the forest green. She could only smile at the beautiful girl in front of her as she nodded quickly.

Within the hour, the two women had quickly dressed themselves out of their sleeping clothes, Ellie clad in her usual buttoned up flannel and jeans, with Dina in a tucked in polo with the sleeves rolled up. She loved the way Dina looked in them.

JJ, on the other hand, was in his little vest, his jeans tucking in a black undershirt, and his little booties. Dina had been baby talking him nearly the entire way there, telling him over and over just how cute he was. Ellie couldn’t help but join in a few times on the way there.

For the past few months, JJ had been learning how to walk and had been getting better every day. He could even take steps without holding onto one of their hands. 

By the time they reached the river, the sun had almost fully come up over the mountain tops. The soft bunches of clouds had started to roll into the sky, decorating the light blue and orange with puffs of white. JJ had been unbelievably fascinated by them – his eyes were so glued to the sky he nearly tripped over rocks and roots in the paths through the forest.

The river was cold – it was clear and crystalline, but it was freezing in the early morning. Dew covered the grass leading to the muddy shores, the leaves glistening with moisture as the world woke up around them. The birds had long been out, singing and chirping away as the family of three continued to walk along toward the moving water.

JJ’s squeal of delight when his little hand touched the ice cold water sent Ellie’s heart ablaze. Dina only laughed as she admired how adorable their son was. He jumped back with shock as he yelped, a laugh escaping his throat as he moved to touch it again, this time using his whole arm as if to try and stop the water from moving. Dina rushed forward to keep the boy from tumbling into the water headfirst.

Ellie watched, chuckling to herself as she took in the dreamy atmosphere surrounding Dina and JJ. She scolded him with an uncontrollable smile as she pulled him away from the water, despite the squeak of protest from the boy. Eventually, Dina caved, and with a gentle hold of his fragile hand, she guided him back toward the water again.

Starting toward them, Ellie dipped down, crouching on her knees as she watched the two of them descend into ankle-deep water just off the bank of the small river.

“One of these days, I’ll teach him to fish,” Ellie said with a swollen, battered heart. He turned his head at his adoptive mother’s words as if he understood them. Dina’s eyes gleamed with adoration as Ellie looked up at her. “Joel taught me years ago. When he’s old enough, it’ll be time I taught him, too.”

“Then you’ll have a fishing buddy,” Dina teased with a grin, hand still clutching delicate fingers as the little boy tried to pull away and move on his own. “He seems like he’s already eager to learn.”

Ellie smiled sweetly as he watched JJ dip down into the water and pick at the small rocks and pebbles on the bank. He really was the most curious, sweet boy.

“Maybe he’ll find somethin’ under those rocks,” Ellie suggested, the way she spoke sounding a little too frighteningly like Joel.

Dina shook her head with amusement. “You wish.”

“What? We need lunch, don’t we?”

Dina scoffed and rolled her eyes, shooting her a look of playfulness. “I literally had a whole plan already. I just picked some potatoes this morning and I have eggs. We can make a salad, too, if you want. But no rock creatures for lunch.”

“No crawdads?” Ellie clarified, voice pained and whiny like a child.

Dina affirmed, “No crawdads.”

The groan of childlike disappointment that pulled from Ellie only made Dina laugh harder. Ellie lived for it.

Eventually, Ellie moved into the cold water with JJ, the freezing river licking at the hem of her jeans tucked into her thick boots. It sent goosebumps up and through her body, but for JJ, she stayed. He didn’t seem to be bothered whatsoever by the icy temperature around his feet.

_This kid’s gonna be tough as nails, like his mama,_ Ellie mused mentally as her eyes subconsciously wandered over to the beautiful dark-haired girl who had moved to stand on the muddy shore alongside the river, watching with arms tucked into her armpits with nothing but an adoring smile across her face.

“I’ll teach you to fish one day,” Ellie murmured to the boy whose hands she held. Her voice was low enough that Dina couldn’t hear. But she still smiled down at him anyway. Big, dark eyes found hers and watched her with wonder as she spoke. 

“You’ll be the best fisherman ever, little man.”

His toothless smile had told her that in some way, he understood.

**Author's Note:**

> this hurt my heart to write :'( why couldn't we get this ending
> 
> don't forget to follow the spotify playlist (i will be updating it as the week goes on) to get a feeling for the vibes i have when i'm writing these! here's the link again: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6qf1UYhdoMRyaSLexX5oMQ?si=09Is9tz3TIqK26cp0IvB2Q&nd=1
> 
> thanks for reading! please leave a comment with some feedback – i live for that shit.
> 
> you can follow my tumblr @lmontyy or lmontyy.tumblr.com. there i post updates on my writing, personal stuff, and i spam with mainly the last of us and she-ra content, with the occasional legend of korra and the walking dead game content, as well. :)
> 
> thank you again! looking forward to thoughts on this.
> 
> much love,  
> monty


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